language issues and other Barcelona, Spain Local Custom Tips

Catalunya is a bilingual community. Everybody in Catalunya do speak Spanish (or Castellano as we prefer to call it here), but in fact NOT everybody do speak Catalan (about 60% in Barcelona, less in some industrial cities, and more inland Catalunya and smaller towns).

Correction, not 100% of people in Catalunya do speak Spanish. I would better say 98%. There may be a 1% of very old people in remote areas who never needed to learn it. And there may be a 1% of nuts who know perfectly Spanish but refuse to speak it (usually when addressing to Spaniards, as they usually don't mind to use their multilingual knowledge with foreigners). You can find quite a few people who may speak to you in Catalan, but they would switch to Spanish immmediately as soon they notice your accent. Please note that many of us here are using BOTH languages all the time, and sometimes we even do not realize we changed!! Except of course you bump into anyone belonging to the second 1% named above (and this would be plain back luck... just ignore them and ask anyone else)

Catalan is not a dialect of Spanish, but a language on its own, derived from Latin as Spanish, French, Italian... etc. As well, Catalan has its own dialects, and it's spoken by about 10 million people in Catalunya and other surrounding areas (including French Catalonia, Balearic Islands, and – if politics permit – Valencia ;)

If you are interested on learning a bit of Catalan language, have a look to the link below (includes a linguistic tool from the University of Barcelona, which may be useful as well for touristy purposes)

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Website: http://www.intercat.gencat.es/eng/index.html

I heard sometimes in the forums that most Catalan people would rater prefer to speak English than Spanish to foreigners. This has part of reality, but not due the political reasons some may think. The fact is that still very few people have a decent level of English, apart from the ones working in the touristy industry and services. Therefore, if you ask something in English to a random person on the street, and it happens this person do speak English, yes... probably he/she would prefer to practice English with you (rater than speak Spanish that’s a daily thing!)

In any case, here as everywhere in the world, the "golden rule" usually works well: be polite and smile!

Here you have some useful words/expressions:

English / Catalan / Spanish (Castilian)

Hello / Hola / Hola
Good morning / Bon dia / Buenos días
Good afternoon / Bona tarda / Buenas tardes
Good evening / Bona nit / Buenas noches
Thank you / Gràcies / Gracias
Please / Sisplau / Por favor
Excuse me / Perdoni / Perdone
I'm sorry / Em sap greu / Lo siento
Goodbye / Adéu / Adios
See you later / Fins després / Hasta luego

Hi, I don’t speak Catalan / Spanish, do you speak English?
Hola, no parlo Català / Castellà, vosté parla Anglés?
Hola, no hablo Catalán / Castellano, usted habla Inglés?

If you're interested in learning some Catalan expressions, the following links is an online conversation guide where you can hear the words/sentences (oriented to foreigner University students, but may be useful to any visitor):

http://www.ub.edu/guiaconversa/angles/a.php?fer=GUIA&idioma[]=1&idioma[]=7&ordre=7

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As they say, "when in Rome..." Therefore, when in Barcelona (or anywhere in Spain), better adapt yourselves to the local timetables. Yes I know it's difficult sometimes (I've to adapt on the reverse way when traveling abroad) However, if you insist on having an early (for Spanish standards) lunch or dinner, you have BIG chances to end in a tourist trap.
As well, the best way to know if a place is good is checking if it's full of local people… but, how you will know, if no one is there yet? ;-)

We Spaniards do have usually a small (too small) early breakfast. Many people have just a cup of coffee before leaving home. Later we may have another coffee (yes, most of us are caffeine-addicts!) with some food, at mid-morning, to have energy enough until our late lunchtime, around 2 PM.

Dinner is a late meal as well, at home usually around 9 PM, at 10 PM or even later when going out.

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As a rule, the best way for you to enjoy local food without spending a fortune is having the main meal at lunchtime (as we locals do). Look for “Menu del dia” at most restaurants (3 courses for a fixed price, including drinks, from let’s say 7 to 20 euros, depending on the place). These “menus” are usually offered only on weekdays (even on Sat-Sun some places have menu option too, but probably more expensive than from Mon to Fri).

Funny enough, the very city center is an ideal area where to find really good deals. There is plenty of offices, we local workers usually have 1 hour for lunch (no, no siesta here! :-) so most of them do eat near the office. Hence, there are many restaurants trying to attract them. A phrasebook may be most helpful if you don't speak Spanish: "menu del dia" deals are usually written in a board outside the restaurant, usually only in local language.

For dinner, you may have just some tapas/pintxos or a sandwich/ salad. Of course at any non-touristy spot, in the touristy restaurants you will spend A LOT of money to eat very little, as they charge too much for very small tapas). By the way, “tapas” are a relatively new thing in Barcelona, but this will be another tip...

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Believe or not, tapas are not typical from Barcelona. It's a relatively new thing, and for people of my parent's age, these are not a 'proper' meal :)

The typical custom was having a 'vermut' on Sunday morning = Going out to have a drink (can be the tap-vermouth, but as well wine, beer...) and some food. Ideally, on a sunny terrace seeing the world going on and discussing about 'all human and divine' with friends :)

You can find many of these old little places to have a 'vermut' at La Barceloneta, or any popular neighborhood. La Bombeta is a good old place to do that, with some good traditional foods

In the city centre, and next to the tourist sights, be careful as most 'tapas' restaurants (not all) will be chain Basque-style places. More expensive, even food is usually ok (or even good). But as authentic as McDonalds.

As said, when we Catalans go out for tapas, is something 'foreing' for us (this does not mean we do not like it). So we say "let's go to a Basque tonight" nearly like we could say "let's go to a Chinese" :) So, the best bet of finding the "real" stuff is going to Basque restaurants as Maitea (near Hospital Clinic). Galician eateries usually have great tapas options too (some in Gotic, around c/. Ample). The Andalucian places are the best to sample great "pescadito frito" (quite a few around La Barceloneta, even the best and cheapest ones are quite out of the way, where people of Andalucian descent do live).

Other good places, authentic classics of Barcelona, even a bit out of the way:
- "El Tomas" in c/. Major de Sarrià. The best "bravas" in town! (incidentally, the pic above was taken there)
- Can Toni in Rambla del Poble Nou. Excellent deal on its tapas menu
- La Esquinica in Nou Barris, Fabra i Puig 296

As well, you can find creative tapas in many trendy restaurants (so many around), especially at El Born, the hypest part of the city. If budget is not an issue, and you want to sample really imaginative stuff, Comerç 24 (surprisingly located in, lets guess... carrer Comerç 24!) is quite interesting, but on teh expensive side.

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Each part of Spain has different and distinctive typical dishes. You can find most of them in Barcelona, both in specialized regional restaurants, and in regular or touristy places. Many tourists ask for some dishes as gazpacho, paella, etc thinking these are typical from here, when they are not.

When you are in Catalonia, it seems more logical trying some really traditional food from the area.

Catalan dishes you may try are:
- esqueixada (salad of preserved cod with tomato, bell peppers and olives)
- escalivada (roasted vegetables) usually served as side dish
- fricandó amb moixernons (veal meat with mushrooms)
- suquet de peix (traditional fishermen’s fish stew)
- escudella (traditional soup made with meat and vegetables, that you eat later as main dish... not a summer thing!!)
- cargols (snails)... yes these are very popular here. I can't eat them indeed. I tried, but I can't ;o)
- crema catalana (similar to creme brulee) for dessert

You can find these at many restaurants

But what I would say is more different at Catalan cuisine from other dishes from Spain, is the use of some sweet and sour combinations, as ànec amb peres (duck with pears) or pollastre amb prunes i pinyons (chicken with dried plums and pinenuts).

Other very traditional Catalan dishes that my friends from other parts of Spain find amusing (if not plain disgusting) are the ones that mix meat and seafood, like mandonguilles amb sepia (meatballs with sauce and pieces of cuttlefish) or pollastre amb llamàntol (chicken with lobster).

Bon profit!

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Another very 'Catalan' tradition are the 'Gegants' (Giants). Hese are big figures representing most of the time Medieval kings & queens, sometimes Christian, sometimes Muslim. A VT-friend from the Emirates was quit surprised when we saw the ones in the picture! Other times they represent famous people, or just people in traditional costumes. They are also present in almost all major Catalan town festivities.

Barcelona's main Giants are called Jaume and Violant (as they represent king Jaume I and Queen Violant d’Hungria). Their names were changed during the Franco’s dictatorship to Isabel and Fernando (as the catholic kings, the traditional names seemed to be too Catalanist for the Regime)

But there are many others, as the famous Gegant del Pi (from the church of El Pi in the same name’s square). A traditional child’s tune (popular around Catalunya, not only in Barcelona) says:

El Gegant del Pi ara balla, ara balla
El Gegant del Pi ara balla pel camí
El Gegant de la Ciutat ara balla, ara balla
El Gegant de la Ciutat ara balla pel terrat!

(The Giant of the Pi now is dancing, now is dancing
The Giant of the Pi now is dancing on the path
The Giant of the City now is dancing, now is dancing
The Giant of the City now is dancing on the roof! )

Giants come out on local festivities to dance on the streets. You can imagine it's not easy to move this huge structure! Usually they are accompanied by capgrossos (bigheads) and sometimes mythological animals (dragons, horses, eagles...). Do not miss them if you re visiting a Catalan town during a festival time.

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In Catalunya, like in other parts of Spain, Italy and Southern France, the traditional Christmas decoration is a Nativity scene. It can be quite large, and a representation of the whole town of Bethlehem and surroundings.

However, we Catalans added an extra character that is not found in the Nativity scenes of any other culture. This extra little character is found in some corner, typically nowhere near the main scene. There is a good reason for his obscure position in the display, as "caganer" translates from Catalan to English as "defecator", and that is exactly what this little statue is doing, defecating!!

From Wikipedia:
Possible reasons for placing a man who is in the act of excreting solid waste from his posterior in a scene which is widely considered holy are as follows:
1. Just tradition.
2. Perceived humor.
3. Mythical Defecation by Dwarfs
4. Finding the Caganer is a fun game, especially for children.
5. The Caganer, by creating feces, is fertilizing the Earth. However, this is probably an a posteriori (no pun intended) explanation, and nobody would say they put the Caganer on the Nativity scene for this reason.
6. The Caganer represents the equality of all people: regardless of status, race, gender everyone defecates.

The exact origin of the Caganer is lost. What do I think?? That it is just a prove of the odd sense of humor of we Catalans, and out like for satire behind our (apparent) seriousness.

Today, you can buy “caganers” of all sizes, even featuring famous people. It has become a popular collector’s item, and probably one of the most genuine souvenirs. On the pic you can see figurines of Barça football players, local and foreigner politicians (the President of he Catalan Parliament, the Spanish president Zapatero and George Bush), and in the very middle, Prince Felipe, Princess Letizia and their child Infanta Leonor. All of them shi... togheter, LOL!

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